The most helpful tips given by a school expert for parents-teachers meeting

In the next weeks parents foster parents and guardians will visit their children's schools to receive an official update from the teachers. There are a few things you might want to remember if you're preparing to attend one of these events suggests a professional.

Profs' Richard Evans an education specialist has offered to advise on how to conduct yourself during parents' evenings to avoid making major mistakes. It is best to avoid many pitfalls such as acting as though the situation is an "interview" or expecting teachers to use "code words" when speaking to you to critique your child secretly.

He said in a statement to The Mirror that "Parents' evenings are often seen with anxiety by parents kids and teachers. It is the coming together of two worlds that are usually only connected by the child as one thing in common.”

“Students worry about being scolded parents worry about appearing to be failing in their parenting duties and teachers worry about excessive parental interference or criticism of their teaching methods. However this shouldn't be the case! Everyone is aiming for the same goal therefore there are no mistakes.”

He continued by saying that everyone there should see the meeting as a "golden opportunity" in light of the pandemic. "These termly meetings are an excellent chance for everyone to communicate instead of using written correspondence from the school to the home like report cards informational letters or detention slips. Meeting in person and establishing a personal connection with your child's teacher is important especially after the Pandemic's Zoom calls” the expert said.

"It should be a group discussion that benefits everyone. Since education does not start and stop at the school gates it is necessary that everyone participates and is aware of their responsibilities to encourage further education.” He did advise parents not to think of the meeting as an "interview" though.

"No one is on the target line! A group conversation is taking place about the learning goals for the upcoming term as well as what has been accomplished over the previous term. Your child is opening up to you and inviting you into their daily life; allow them to give you a tour and introduce you to their teachers. Most important listen before you begin to speak or ask questions. Take a moment to relax and just be the guest. Let your child first reply to the teacher's observation of their behavior in class and then explain how they did. Teachers will provide you with important details about your child that should be easy for both you and them to understand.”

Before we saw how some educators would secretly communicate about kids among themselves by using "code words." But the expert warns that it would be a grave error if you showed up there expecting your child's teacher to begin speaking in code or using terms that would be completely beyond your child. Evans argues that this isn't something that should happen during a parents' evening because you shouldn't be talking about anything that your child isn't already aware of from comments made on their work or tests.

Your objective he says should be to determine how you can support your child at home whether it is through help with homework summer school educational trips over the breaks or buying books that will improve their subject development.

“Find out if your child would benefit from additional tutoring in a particular subject or with a useful skill like managing their time during exams. Make sure you are prepared with questions about what you can do after traditional education is complete and look at the bigger picture. Is your child making progress towards his or her educational or future employment goals?”

In the end he said "Spend an evening with your child and learn about their world. Don't stress over the experience. This is your time to learn how you can support your child in developing their knowledge skills confidence and grades. Consider it an opportunity.